Acoustic reflectors

ABSTRACT

An acoustic reflector comprises a shell surrounding a solid elastomeric core free of joints. The shell transmits acoustic waves incident on the surface of the shell partially into the core to be focused and reflected from an area of the shell located opposite to the area of incidence so as to provide a reflected acoustic signal output from the reflectorpartially around the circumference of the shell and to combine constructively with the reflected acoustic signal output. The ratio of the speed of sound wave transmission in the shell to the average speed of the wave transmission in the core is preferably in the range of 2.74 to 3.4 best results being in the range of 2.74 to 2.86 inclusive.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/354,731, filed Jan. 20, 2012, which is a Continuation-in-Part of:

-   -   a) International Application No. PCT/GB2010/051161 filed in        English on 16, Jul. 2010 claiming priority to GB Applications        Nos:        -   0913199.6—29, Jul. 2009        -   0913200.2—29, Jul. 2009        -   0913201.0—29, Jul. 2009        -   0913203.6—29, Jul. 2009        -   0913387.7—31, Jul. 2009        -   0913388.8—31, Jul. 2009        -   0914462.7—19, Aug. 2009        -   0915073.1—1, Sep. 2009        -   0917714.8—12, Oct. 2009        -   0921397.6—7, Dec. 2009        -   0921399.2—7, Dec. 2009        -   1001810.9—4, Feb. 2010        -   1006093.7—13, Apr. 2010    -   b) GB Application No. 1121116.6 filed 8, Dec. 2011.

The entire contents of these applications are incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

This invention related to passive acoustic reflectors and markers forunderwater use.

Discussion of Prior RT

Passive acoustic reflectors are known, for example, from UK PatentGB2437016A (THE SECRETARY OF SATE FOR DEFENCE) Oct. 10, 2007(incorporated herein by reference). In UK Patent 2437016 a passiveacoustic reflector has a wall arranged to surround a core, said shellbeing capable of transmitting acoustic waves incident on the shell intothe core to be focused and reflected from an area of the shell locatedopposite to the area of incidence so as to provide a reflected acousticsignal output from the reflector, characterised in that the core is inthe form of a sphere or right cylinder and is formed of one or moreconcentric layers of a material having a wave speed of from 840 to 1500ms⁻¹ and that the shell is dimensioned relative to the core such that aportion of the acoustic waves incident on the shell are coupled into theshell wall and guided therein around the circumference of the shell andthen re-radiated to combine constructively with the said reflectedacoustic signal output so as to provide an enhanced reflected acousticsignal output.

More recently other potential applications for acoustic reflectors haveemerged to mark underground, gas pipes and the like, which unlike otherunderground objects, such as electricity cables, are very difficult todetect using conventional electro-magnetically based detection systems.

Known reflectors including those seen in WO2009/122184A (published afterthe earliest priority date of the present application) comprisehemispherical shells. When the core is solid, such as an elastomer, theelastomer is cast into the two halves of the shell. This is labourintensive in manufacture because of the need carefully to check and topup the core castings after initial solidification and to ensure a flatlevel surface on the tops of the two halves of the core. The performanceof such is not always predictable and furthermore when made according tothe construction described will distort and/or fail when immersed inwater of any depth, or when raised. This is because:

-   -   a. The separate halves of the core are joined together, this        causes a discontinuity in acoustic paths in the shell, with the        risk also of small gaps between the parts of the core, with        consequential structural weakness and huge variations of        performance between one reflector and another;    -   b. The shells and ores are glued together, and are inherently of        weak construction for deployment in water of any depth.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present acoustic reflector comprises a shellsurrounding a core, said shell having one or a plurality of acousticwindows through which acoustic waves incident on the surface of theshell are transmitted into the core, and in which acoustic wavesentering the core are reflected from the interior of the shell oppositethe window(s) back towards and through the window(s) in which the coreis solid.

It has been found that excellent performance is achieved if the ratio ofthe speed of sound wave transmission in the shell to the average speedof the wave transmission in the core is in the range 2.5 to 3.4 or amultiple thereof.

Preferably said ratio is the range of 2.74 to 2.86 inclusive or amultiple thereof.

The inventors have found, quite unexpectedly, that peak target echostrength occurs at ratio of about 2.82, with a strength of −4 dB, butwithin the range it is generally better than −15 dB, and in the range2.5 to 3.4 is better than −10 dB. Outside this range reflectors are lesssuitable for commercial application as the diameter of the reflector hasto increase significantly to compensate for reduced target strength. Forexample if the ratio is 2.48, the target echo strength has fallen to −27dB. Operating within the range acoustic reflectors of 300 mm in diameteror less are perfectly feasible, although for other reasons explainedblow, 100 mm is probably the practical lower limited for commercialreflectors operating in a sub-sea environment because the frequencies towhich the reflector will respond increase markedly

The shells can be formed of non-metals, for example a material selectedfrom the group comprising glass reinforced polyphthalamide,polypropylene, aluminium or an alloy thereof, a resin impregnated fibre,in which the fibre itself is selected from the group comprising carbonfibre, aramid fibre, poly(p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole) (PBO) fibre,nylon 6 and polythene fibre. In the case of fibre, by varying the amountof fibre in the composite the speed of sound can be adjusted to matchthe application.

Of potential metal shells aluminium and its alloys are particularly goodas shell materials as aluminium reflects about 50% of incident acousticsignals, the rest being absorbed and passed through in the core or theshell. This compares with steel, for example, where only a relativelysmall percentage of the incident acoustic radiation is passes into thematerial, the rest being reflected.

Other potential core materials include have speed around 1620 ms−1,butyl rubbers NASL-H862A and B252 (Ref: Lastinger in NRL memorandumAD733978 “Speed of Sound in Four Elastomers”) which has a wave speedaround 1620 ms−1, RTV11 is an interesting core material as, as otherelastomers its wave speed can be varied by loading with calciumcarbonate. However. The inventors have found that a shell manufacturedwith 25% glass fibre reinforced polyphthalamide with a silicon elastomercore of RTV12 produces excellent reflection of incident acoustic wavesat specific frequencies. 25% glass fibre reinforced polyphthalamide issold under the trade name Zytel® HTN51G25HSL by E.I. du Pont de Nemoursand Company. A similar glass fibre reinforced polyphthalamide is marketsunder the trade mark Amadel by Solvey SA. Polythalamide based shells areparticularly advantageous in the context of this invention as they arehard, and have a quick transition at around 310° C. from a solid toliquid phase, without substantial softening below that temperature. Thischaracteristic means that shell can be filled with liquid core materialsbelow that temperature and the core material cured without risk ofdistortion. Realisation of acoustic reflectors according to thisinvention opens the possibility of designing reflecting devices for allkinds of applications. Polyphthalamides with higher glass fibre contentof 35%, 45% and 60% are obtainable, these provide even harder shells,but as the glass fibre content increases so does the brittleness of thefinal product and the speed of acoustic transmission in the shell.

In one particularly advantageous application, an acoustic reflector ischaracterised in that it comprises an elongate substantially cylindricalstructure with a central rod acting as the core surrounded by anelongate shell of tubular cross section.

Such a reflector can be attached, for example, to a pipe section to markthe pipe below water or ground. If a plurality of such reflectors, sayfour, are pre-attached to a pipe section before the pipe section isimmersed in water, it easily and economically provides a system formarking the pipe section; if all pipe sections in pipe line have suchmarkers attached the pipeline as a whole can be marked.

In another embodiment of the invention an acoustic reflector accordingto this invention is toroidal.

In a further embodiment of the invention an acoustic reflector accordingto the invention is mounted on an underwater object to monitor scouringof the bed of a mass of water to which it is to be placed. The reflectormay be mounted on such an object as part of the construction of theobject prior to it being placed in the water.

The invention provides a method of monitoring scouring underwaterscouring around an object comprising attaching at least one acousticreflector according to this invention, and positioning said acousticreflector below the natural level of the bed of the water mass concernedsuch that scouring may expose the reflector enabling it to be detectedon interrogation by an acoustic beam.

Advantageously an acoustic reflector according to this inventionattachment means to attach the acoustic reflector to a rope, cable orthe like which is conveniently an eye. If the reflector has an elastomeror other non-metallic core, a hole may be provided in the shell to fillthe core. This hole is plugged and the eye is conveniently attached tothe plug. As an alternative the reflector may be mounted in a net.

In another embodiment of the invention a method of monitoring or markingan underwater object or area comprising positioning at least oneacoustic reflector according to the invention at the object or area ofinterest, enabling the reflector to be detected on interrogation by anacoustic beam. This may, for example, be by attaching the reflector to ahigh value object or container which is at risk of being lost or anaircraft black box. Another aspect of the invention is to attach such asonar reflector a diver or the diver's equipment, and to interrogate thereflector by sonar to identify the diver's positions.

A further application of a reflector according to the invention is toindicate to underwater mammals that employ echo location systems fortheir navigation the presence of particular areas by marking such areaor object with one or a plurality of sonar reflectors according to theinvention. In a further development of this application it becomespossible to use underwater mammals for economic purposes, such asidentifying, retrieving or delivering items, by step of training suchmammals to recognise the presence of an acoustic reflector according tothe invention.

Acoustic reflectors according to the invention can be positioned underthe sea by attaching the reflectors to a rope, cable, net or the like,on reeling the rope, cable or net from a drum. The location of thereflectors at the point of lying can be identified by using a towedsonar array towed by a vessel on which the drum is mounted, obviatingthe need to use separate submersible mounted sonar systems for thepurpose.

Realisation of acoustic reflectors according to this invention opens thepossibility of designing reflecting devices for all kinds ofapplications.

One example is to indicate to underwater mammals that employ echolocation systems for their navigation, the presence of particular areasor objects by marking such area or object with one or a plurality ofsonar reflectors according to the invention. In a further development ofthis application it becomes possible to use underwater mammals foreconomic purposes, such as identifying, retrieving or delivering items,by the step of training such mammals to recognise the presence of anacoustic reflector according to the invention.

Another example is to enable location finding with respect to a knownlocation of one or more reflectors. This could be particularly usefulfor autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) which rely on inertialnavigation systems (INS) for position finding. It is well known that theINS of such vehicles require to be recalibrated following descent of thevehicle to depth and this could be achieved by interrogation ofreflectors having known spectral characteristics and known positions. Toaid the identification of specific reflectors for purposes of providinga datum location, it may be convenient to set out a group of reflectorsin a specific pattern and this could be in the form of a pre-preparedcombination e.g. on a plate or mat. The same type of arrangement mayalso be useful for locating an object of interest on the seabed such asa well head or pipe valve with different numbers and/or arrangements ofthe reflectors being indicative of a specific object being marked. Thesonar source can be mounted on any conventional carrier, such as asubmarine or other manned submersible, permanently mounted underwatersonar, a dipping sonar mounted on a boat, aircraft or helicopter, or anAUV.

Triangulation systems are possible, in which receivers are located atthree different places and the specific location of an object isidentified by conventional triangulation means.

Other examples include:

-   -   marking of a specific geographic location of a submerged object        or the application to an object in preparation for subsequent        submergence either alone or in combination with other similar        sonar reflectors/active location devices to provide an aid to        location (red+green versus red+blue for example) i.e. pipelines,        power cables, telephony cables, fixed equipment on the seabed;    -   application to a submerged device or the application to a device        in preparation for subsequent submergence which will mark the        current location of the device within or at the bottom of the        water column or on the seabed, i.e. the marking of cables or        other devices which are moved around either freely or within        certain bounds such with the tide and/or current or other        movable assets;    -   marking underwater parts of oil or gas platforms or the remains        of such platforms which could include using differently tuned        reflectors as a means for identifying the ownership, function or        type etc. of particular categories of underwater asset;    -   marking locations which have sub-sea/navigational significance        for example, for shipping lanes, as in-port location aids, for        wrecks or other navigation hazards such as coral reefs,        underwater rocks etc.;    -   marking or indicating zones of economic or commercial interest,        for example national maritime boundaries for say mineral        extraction rights;    -   identification of high value containers lost overboard from        vessels, or lost in aircraft accidents, or the location and        recovery of aircraft black boxes;    -   geophysical structure monitoring such as marking and monitoring        the movement of mid ocean rifts;    -   marking dangerous objects on the seabed for later disposal such        as wrecks and mines for example;    -   diver tracking.

An interesting application of the invention is to mark passages orobjects for guiding dolphins and porpoises and under-sea mammals thatuse echo location. The frequency of the sounds produced by bottlenosedolphins, for example, ranges from 0.25 to 150 kHz. Higher frequencyclicks (40 to 150 kHz) are used primarily in echolocation. Peakfrequency of typical echolocation clicks is about 100 kHz, but frequencyvaries considerably with specific echolocation tasks. By manufacturingsonar reflectors to reflect at this frequency and attaching suchreflectors to underwater objects, the objects can be marked to guidesuch mammals. In particular it is possible to train dolphins and thelike to recognise particular sonar reflectors and to use them to takeitems to the area of the reflector, to recover items from the area ofthe reflector.

A problem that was also identified with acoustic reflectors of UK patent2437016 was in manufacture when an elastomer core was used, theelastomer cracked sometimes on curing causing fissures to occur withinthe reflector, affecting its performance. One solution proposed is toprovide a hole in the shell, with the elastomer initially poured intothe shell through the hole, cured, topped up by overfilling, curedagain, the excess elastomer removed and the holed plugged.

Another potential problem is that there is a statistical risk that withreflectors of the kind described in the preceding paragraph, havingnon-metallic shells, and deployed in deep water (more than 5000 meters)that water can enter. When the reflector is raised the surface, thepressure of any water that entered would be substantially greater thanthat of the surrounding water or the air, with the risk of a sudden andcatastrophic failure of the shell of the reflector.

Existing manufacturing methods can be cumbersome in some cases, andcannot be used with cores made of materials that are solid, such asmetal or ceramics or which are already cured or not free-flowing in theuncured state. Although other manufacturing methods for reflectorsdescribed here, there is a desire to seek a low cost uniform method ofmanufacture of acoustic reflectors which may be adapted to control anyrisk from rapid decompression of entrapped water.

Accordingly, an acoustic reflector a further embodiment of the presentinvention is characterised in that the shell comprises two halves joinedtogether and surrounds the core. In a spherical reflector the shellcomprises two hemispheres which can be joined by spin or laser welding.

Where the shell is made of a material which may fail under internalpressures as a result of decompression of the reflector when it israised to the surface the shell halves can be provided with a region attheir joint of reduced resistance to internal pressure.

In the case of hemispheres with a spin weld between them thecircumference of the spin welded area may be of reduced thickness or ofreduced strength.

Initially one of the halves may have a vent to release trapped air whenthe two halves are put together around a core. The vent is sealed whenmanufacture is complete. The sealing can be appropriate to the materialof the shell, including spin welding a small plug, filling with resinetc.

In the case of a shell made of two hemispheres, the exposed edge of onehemisphere may have an upstanding tongue to engage in a groove formed inthe corresponding exposed edge of the other hemisphere. If thehemispheres are to be spin welded together, the edge of the tongue andthe inside of the groove may bay one or more upstanding small tabs whichpreferentially melt to form the weld when one hemisphere is turnedrapidly with respect to the other.

If the hemispheres are of non-metallic material which is statisticallyat risk of failure from internal pressure, the tongue may occupy abouthalf the groove initially so that the welded material does not fill thewhole of the groove after spin welding providing a circumference ofweakness, for a glass reinforced polyphthalamide shell which mightnormally fail at 170 MP, the hemispheres' joint would be designed tofail at 50 to 100 MP, allowing any internal pressure to be releasedsafely.

In another aspect of the invention, a method of manufacturing anacoustic reflector according to the invention comprises the step ofjoining the shell together from two hemispheres around a core.

In a spherical acoustic reflector the method of manufacture comprisesjoining two hemispheres together around a spherical core.

The method of manufacture may additionally comprise the step of spinwelding the said two hemispheres together.

The spin welding may comprise the step of spinning a tongue formed onthe exposed edge of one hemisphere within a groove formed on the exposededge of the other hemisphere. Additionally this step may include thestep of melting upstanding tabs on the tongue and groove together toform the weld.

Further the method of manufacture may include the steps of preparing thecore to the shape and size that it would be when deployed in areflector, placing the said core in a place where the temperature isbelow that at which it would be deployed, allowing substantially all thecore to reach said temperature, removing the core from said place, andplacing it between two halves of the shell, sealing the two halves ofthe shell together.

Preferably any trapped air is allowed to vent though a vent in one ofthe halves before the vent is sealed.

A manufacturing process as described in the previous two paragraphsavoids the risk of included air pockets and fissures in cores made byother methods. The only way of double checking the integrity ofreflectors made by the other method is by non-destructive testing, suchas X-ray examination, after the reflector is made. At that stage aftercompletion of the manufacturing process the write off cost is areflector does not meet the specification is comparatively high. Bydeploying the technique of the preceding paragraphs, cores can beexamined for their integrity before they are deployed in shells when thewrite off costs are still low.

In a typical reflector, with the silicon elastomer RTV 12 for the core,the RTV 12 is overfilled in a spherical mould to the size required forits deployment , cured, and removed and the sprue cut off. The intendedcore can be examined for integrity and, if satisfactory, place in adomestic refrigerator. Hemispheres of glass reinforced polyphthalamidewith a tongue on one hemisphere and a groove on the other are made in aconventional way. The RTV 12 core is taken from the refrigerator andplaced in one of the hemispheres. The other hemisphere is then placed onthe core with the tongue of one hemisphere engaging the groove in theother. The two hemispheres are spin welded together as described. As thecore returns to ambient temperature, it expands driving air trappedbetween the core and the hemispheres out of a small vent in one of thehemisphere. After the core has fully reached ambient temperature, sayafter 24 hours, the vent is sealed with resin. Metals cores, ceramiccores and other elastomer cores can be prepare in a similar way,although casting rather than moulding would be the more appropriatemethod of preparing the core in many circumstances.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the invention will be described, by way of example only,with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1A shows a spherical acoustic reflector according to the inventionin a schematic section;

FIG. 1B shows another view of the reflector seen from the direction ofan incident acoustic signal, looking in the direction A-A of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2A shows a spherical acoustic reflector according to the inventionin a schematic section, where the shell is constructed of a materialhaving two acoustic windows;

FIG. 2B shows another view of the reflector seen from the direction ofan incident acoustic signal, looking in the direction A-A of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3 shows a similar partial section through a non-metallic acousticreflector having a plug with a ring attachment means;

FIGS. 4A to 4C show various components to be used in a manufacturingprocess to make a spherical reflector according to invention;

FIG. 4D to 4F shows an assembled acoustic reflector made from thecomponents shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C, with FIGS. 4E and 4 f showing detailof tongue and groove arrangements;

FIGS. 5A to 5D show an alternative structure to that shown in FIGS. 4Ato 4F;

FIGS. 6A and 6B and FIG. 6C show a further alternative structures tothat shown in FIGS. 4A to 4F;

FIG. 7 illustrates the use a reflector mounted in a net to mark an itemof interest;

FIG. 8 illustrates the placement of a line of reflectors from a ship.

FIG. 9 shows a pipe section with elongate solid metal acousticreflectors attached;

FIG. 10 is a schematic cross section through the acoustic reflector onthe line B-B′ of FIG. 9;

FIGS. 11 and 12 show a toroidal acoustic reflector according to theinvention, FIG. 11 being a cross section on the line C-C′ of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 shows the use of acoustic reflectors to identify scouring aroundan object, such as a bridge support, in water;

FIG. 14 illustrates the use of acoustic reflectors according to theinvention to provide simple position information underwater:

FIG. 15 is a schematic drawing of a more complex position informationsystem showing a sonar fitted submersible interrogating a field of sevenreflectors in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 16 illustrates the use of a wide band transmitter and reflectionsbeing returned at one or more of three specific frequencies from a fieldof the kind shown in FIG. 14 comprising seven reflectors;

FIG. 17 illustrates the use of a transmitter transmitting only at thethree frequencies of interest in the field of FIG. 14;

FIG. 18 illustrates an alternative arrangement to that discussed withreference to FIG. 16 using a wide band sonar transmission to interrogatea field of reflectors, each reflector having a different reflectioncharacteristic to others in the field; and

FIG. 19 shows the frequency response for a 200 mm RTV12 reflector with a25% glass reinforced polyphthalamide shell

DETAILED DISCUSSION OF EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, an acoustic reflector 10 comprises aspherical shell 12 surrounding a core 16. The shell 12 is formed from25% glass fibre reinforced polyphthalamide. The core 16 is RTV 12.

Acoustic waves 18, transmitted from an acoustic source (not shown), areincident as shown the outside wall 14 of shell 12. The shell hasacoustic transmission window 20, its exact diameter being dependent onthe diameter of the shell, acoustic waves incident on this window 20 aretransmitted through shell 12 and into core 16.

The incident acoustic wave striking windows 20 pass through the shellthe shell 12 into core 16: to be focused a focal point 26 on the insideof shell 12 opposite window 20 to be reflected back to the window.

A portion of the incident waves 18 is coupled into the shell 12 andgenerates both elastic and transverse waves 30 which are guided withinthe shell 12 around its circumference. The strongest waves are theelastic ones. For reflectors in accordance with this invention, forcertain frequencies, the elastic waves travelling around the shell wall12 and the reflected acoustic arriving at the focal point 26 through thecore are in phase with each other and combine constructively, to providea further enhanced reflected acoustic signal output from the focal pointalong the axis of the reflector providing a strong response 32.

25% glass fibre reinforced polyphthalamide immersed in sea water has avery wide single acoustic window, aluminium and aluminium alloys on theother hand have a relatively narrow acoustic window either side of anorthogonal axis through the shell, in the direction of an incomingacoustic wave. If a tangent to the surface of the shell makes an angleof less than 65° with the orthogonal, incident waves will be reflectedand not absorbed. However, if the tangent makes and angle of less thanabout 65° there is a second quite wide acoustic window, concentric withthe first thorough which acoustic wave can enter the shell. This isshown in FIG. 2, here an acoustic reflector 10 comprises sphericalaluminium or aluminium allows shell 12 surrounding a core 16. The shell12 is formed from aluminium. The core 16 is butyl rubber NASL-H862A orB252 (alternatively the silicon based elastomer RTV11 loaded with 60%calcium carbonate can be used).

Acoustic waves 18, transmitted from an acoustic source (not shown), areincident as shown the outside wall 14 of shell 12. The shell has anannular transmission window 20, its exact diameter being dependent onthe diameter of the shell, acoustic waves incident on this window 20 aretransmitted through shell 12 and into core 16.

Aluminum and its alloys have a wide angle transmission window of about40° to 50°, meaning that 50% of the energy in any acoustic wave strikingthe surface at an angle of about 25° (corresponding to a tangent of 65°)to 70° will pass into the aluminium shell. This region is shown as theannular window 20 as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. 50% of the energy inwaves striking the aluminium surface at 90° in region 22, which is acentral circular window, will also pass into the aluminium. Theremaining energy is reflected from the surface of the reflector.

The incident acoustic wave striking windows 20 and 22 pass through theshell the shell 12 into core 16. The incident acoustic wave that passesthrough window 20 follows an annular cross sectioned path 24 to befocused a focal point 26 on the inside of shell 12 opposite window 22.Acoustic waves that striking central window 22 follow a central path 28to the focal point 26. The acoustic waves that have passed throughwindows 22 and 22 are reflected back along the central path 28.

A portion of the incident waves 18 is coupled into the shell 12 andgenerates both elastic and transverse waves 30 which are guided withinthe shell 12 around its circumference. The strongest waves are theelastic ones. Where the materials which form the shell 12 and the core16 are in accordance with this invention, for certain frequencies, theelastic waves travelling around the shell wall 12 and the reflectedacoustic arriving at the focal point 26 through the core are in phasewith each other and combine constructively, to provide a furtherenhanced reflected acoustic signal output from the focal point alongpath 28 providing a strong response 32.

If RTV12 is used as a core material with an aluminium or aluminium alloyshell the ratio of the acoustic wave speed in the shell to that of thecore is about 6:1.

In FIG. 3 an acoustic reflector 40 according to this invention comprisesa shell 42 and a hole 48 penetrating the shell 42. The core 46 of theshell 42 is filled with a silicon based elastomer material RTV 12. Theshell is 25% glass reinforced polyphthalamide.

The inside 52 of hole 48, corresponding to the inner wall 44 of theshell 42 is of a smaller diameter than the outside 54 corresponding toouter wall 45 of shell 42.

A plug 50 fills the hole 48 and is a tight fit therein. The plug 50decreases in diameter from the outside of the hole 54 to the inside 52.The hole 48, rather than being tapered uniformly, has steps 64 formed itits side 58. The plug 50 has corresponding steps 62 in its side wall 60.The stepped portions 60 and 62 have small interfering tabs, which, whenthe plug is rotated rapidly, melt and form a friction weld 65 betweenthe stepped potions 60 and 62. In this example an eye fitting 66 isprovided on the outside surface of the plug enabling the acousticreflector to be fixed to a post, stanchion, pier or other underwaterobject.

The core 46 is initially rough filled with core material through hole48. As the core material is allowed to cure, any shrinkage cracks willappear. The core material is then topped up with further corematerial—slightly overfilling—and again allowed to cure. Excess corematerial is removed and the plug 50 is inserted. In this example theplug 50 is made of aluminium as is shell 42, this eliminates anyinterference with the acoustic signal transmitted around the shell.Friction welding of the plug 50 in hole 48 is possible, and this is doneby rapidly rotating the plug 50, melting the tabs on stepped portions 60and 62 causing a friction weld 65 to form between the stepped potions 60and 62. If the plug and shell are of dissimilar materials, the tabswould be omitted and the plug may be constructed in a way to be hammeredand glued into place. Once in water, water pressure will tend to keepthe plug in place.

FIGS. 4A to 4F show alternative manufacturing means for a sphericalacoustic reflector.

FIGS. 4A and 4B show respectively two hemispherical halves 702 and 704of the shell 12 of a spherical reflector 10. The hemispheres are made of25% glass reinforced polyphthalamide. The core 16 of the reflector, inthis case a sphere of RTV12 is shown in FIG. 4C. The diameter of thecore is such that it is very slightly larger, at ambient temperaturethan the inside diameter of the two hemispheres 702 and 704 whenassembled together. A small vent 712 is provided in one of thehemispheres, it is not critical as to which. A tongue 706 is providedaround the rim 708 of one of the hemispheres 702. The upstanding edgesof the tongue 708 and the rim 706 have a plurality of tabs 710distributed around their edges. A groove 714 is provided on the rim 716of the other hemisphere 704, with the edges the groove 714 and rim 716having a plurality of tabs 718.

The RTV12 for the core 16 is initially poured into an internallyspherical mould of the right dimensions for the intended application andcured. The mould is overfilled leaving a sprue to reduce the opportunityfor fissures to form. The sprue is removed and the moulded cured sphereof RTV12 checked for defects and placed in a refrigerator and left toensure that it reaches a uniform temperature, below that at which thereflector is intended for use.

Subsequently the RTV 12 core is taken from the refrigerator and placedin one of the hemispheres, say 704. The other hemisphere, say 702, isthen placed over the core 16 with the tongue 706 of hemisphere 702engaging within the groove 714 in the other hemisphere 704. This can beseen in more detail in FIGS. 4D to 4F. The dimensions of the tongue andgroove are such that a gap 722 is left between one side on the tongueand the wall of the groove 714 on that side. The tabs 710 and 718mutually interfere if the hemispheres are turned. One hemisphere is spunwith respect to the other, this causes the tabs 710 and 718 to melt andmerge with each other forming friction welds 720 (seen in FIG. 4F)between the tongue 708 and groove 714.

As seen in FIG. 4F, the gap 722 between the tongue and groove is loosefilled with melt 724 from the melt, forming a weaker area around thediameter of the reflector. As the temperature of the core returns toambient temperature, the core expands driving any air trapped betweenthe core and the hemispheres out of the small vent 712. The finalassembled reflector is shown in FIG. 4E.

Once the core has fully reached ambient temperature, say after 24 hours,the vent 712 is sealed with resin. As in this case the core is anelastomer, its expansion will ensure that it bears on the inner wallshell all around its surface, with no gaps.

The same principle can be applied to other combinations of materials. Aparticularly useful combination is that of an aluminium or aluminiumalloy shell and an RTV 12 elastomer core. The manufacturing process isidentical to that described, save that the vent 712 is plugged with analuminium (or aluminium alloy) pin spin welded in place.

The cooling of the core and bringing it back to ambient is not anessential step in the manufacturing process but the inventors have foundthat minimising the trapped air in between the shell and core isdesirable to ensure excellent acoustic coupling between shall and core,and including that step makes to resultant reflectors less prone tovariation in performance due to minor variations in the core and shalldimensions within their normal manufacturing tolerances.

An alternative hemispherical construction is shown in FIGS. 5A to 5D.Here, the reflector 10 has a shell 12 formed of two hemispheres 752 and754. The edges of the hemispheres have cut out steps 756 and 758, step756 towards the outside of the rim 760 of hemisphere 752 and step 758towards the inside of edge rim 762 of hemisphere 754. When the twohalves are joined, the depth of step 756 is greater than the depth ofstep 758 to that when the hemispheres are brought together the greaterdepth of step 758 forms a circumferential portion 766 of reducedthickness close to the equator of the shell. The two hemispheres 752 and754 are joined by friction or laser welding. To aid friction weldingupstanding tabs may be provided on the outer edges of the steps 756 and758 and on the cut away portions of the rims 760 and 762. A vent 764 isincluded in one of the hemisphere. The core is made as described withreference to FIG. 4C and the shell assembled around the core. The twohemispheres joined together as described by spin welding. Should wateringress though the shell into the interior of the reflector and asignificant pressure differential occur between the inside of thereflector and the outside the reflector will fail preferentially at theinternal circumferential potion of reduced thickness in a safe manner,rather than explosively.

Another alternative hemispherical construction is shown in FIGS. 6A and6B. FIG. 6A shows a side view of one of two identical hemisphericalshell halves, and FIG. 6B show a top view, showing the inside detail ofthe shell half. The components main components of an acoustic reflectoraccording to the invention are similar to those shown in FIGS. 4A to 4F.However the two hemispherical shell halves 733 are identical. These twoidentical hemispheres 733 comprise the shell 12 of a spherical acousticreflector. In this example the hemispheres are made of aluminium alloy6061T6. The core 16 of the reflector is cast RTV12 and is shown in FIG.4C. A venting hole 712 is provided in each hemisphere.

Tongues 742 and grooves 744, each of equal length, are provided aroundthe rim 746 the hemispheres 733. Two pairs of tongues and grooves areprovided in this instance, so that the rim is effectively divided intofour equal length sections, each section in turn around the rim having atongue or a groove. When the two hemispheres 733 are assembled together,tongues 742 of each of the hemisphere are received into grooves 744 inthe other.

The RTV12 for the core is prepared as described with reference to FIGS.4A to 4F is from a two part mix and initially is poured into a shapedmould to form the core with the pimples and cured in a conventional way.The mould is overfilled leaving a sprue to reduce the opportunity forfissures to form. The sprue is then cut off once the core has cured.Subsequently the RTV 12 core is placed in one of the hemispheres 733. Atwo part epoxy resin glue such as Araldite® is spread on the tongues 742and in the grooves 744 of both hemispheres 733 before the secondhemisphere 733 is placed over the core with the tongues 742 of each ofthe hemispheres engaging with the grooves 744 of the other hemisphere.In this example, there is no gap between the tongue and groove inassembled. There is a small amount of rotational freedom of movementbetween the two hemispheres which can be used to ensure that the glue isevenly spread over the tongues and grooves and air excluded before itcures.

Finally, the vents 712 would be plugged using a pin, normally, in thesame material as the shell glued using a two part epoxy resin glue.

FIG. 6C is perspective view of another shell half, again one of twoidentical shell halves. In this case the entire circumference of the rim746 of each hemisphere is divided into two, one half having a tongue theother having a groove to receive the tongue from the other identicalhemisphere.

Although an aluminium alloy shell is described with reference to FIGS.6A to 6C, the construction principle can be used in association with anyappropriate shell material.

If the construction of FIG. 3 is to be adopted, the vent 712 or 764 inFIGS. 4 to 6 would be replaced by the larger diameter filling hole, thecore filled and the reflector plugged as described in previously. Inthat case of the construction of FIG. 6, the hemispheres would have tobe dissimilar with on hemisphere having a large hole and the other none.

Reflectors of this kind have different frequency responses for differentincident acoustic wave, and that frequency response depends on thethickness of the shell.

For a 100 mm reflector with an RTV 12 core and 25% glass reinforcedpolyphthalamide shell, best frequency response is obtained at 450 KHzwith a 7 mm thick shell in a 100 mm diameter reflector the minimumpractical operational frequency is 250 KHz with a 4 mm shell. With a 2mm shell, best operational frequency is 690 KHz. For a 200 mm diameterreflector best response is obtained at 120 KHz with an 8.8 mm shellthickness. Other point readings are 4.4 mm shell 100 KHz, 6.1 mm 150KHz, 8.1 mm 180 KHz, 8.3 mm 210 KHz, 13.7 mm 250 KHz, 14.0 mm 300 KHz.The minimum practical operating frequency with a 200 mm reflector isabout 90 KHz. For a 300 mm reflector minimum operational frequency is 50KHz with a 9.8 mm reflector, other sample designs are 100 KHz 9.4 mmthickness, 150 KHz 7 mm, 200 KHz 5.5 mm, and 250 KHz 13.7 mm. At eachwall thickness a number of harmonic responses are obtained at higherfrequencies, this can be seen in more detail graphically in FIG. 19showing the response of a 200 mm diameter reflector with an 8.8 mm thickshell wall.

Reflectors according to the invention can be mounted on vertical cablessuspended from an underwater buoy at sea, the cable itself beingconnected to a counterweight. A rope or the like tied to an eye mountedon the reflector can join the reflector to the vertical cable. Thissystem can then be used to mark water objects or items of interest.

In some circumstances, especially when the object to be marked is in atidal region or area subjects to strong currents, excess strain can beimposed on the eye mounting on the plug by the interactions of thereflector with tidal and current movements, such that in extremesituations the any eye can break away. To avoid this, in FIG. 7 thereflector is contained in a net 148 connected by a rope or cable 146 toa further cable 140 suspended between buoy 144 and counterweight 142rather than fixed by a rope through an eye.

Similar arrangements can be devised to enable the reflector is to bemounted against a vertical object, such as a stanchion or bridge pier,drilling platform leg.

In FIG. 8, a number of acoustic reflectors 10 are to be laid on thesea-bed 150. The reflectors are linked by a cable 152 on a reel 154mounted on the back of a cable laying vessel 160 towing a towed sonararray 156. Typically the cable may be 100 m or more in length. Bydesigning the system such that the reflectors 10 lay above the cable 152when they reach the sea bed 150 by attaching them to buoyancy means, forexample, it is possible for a sonar signal from the towed array 156 tobe reflected back by any particular reflector 10′ to provide the towedsonar array with accurate information about the position of thereflector 10′. If this is done for each reflector when it reaches thesea bottom it is possible to plot the position of each of thereflectors. Previously this was only practical using a separatesubmersible. Although this has been described using a cable linking theindividual reflectors, a rope, chain or net could be used depending onthe circumstances.

FIG. 9 shows a schematic diagram of a pipe section 930 fitted with anumber of elongate cylindrical acoustic rod reflectors 932 eachaccording to the invention. Each reflector silicon elastomer 934 issheathed by an aluminium tube 936. Each of elongate cylindrical ends 938of the reflectors 932 is capped and closed off by a conventionalelectrically insulating material, which, in particular isolates thealuminium tubes 936 from the pipe section and prevents any electricalconduction there between. The reflectors 932 are attached to the pipesection 930 through upstanding lugs 942 fitted to the pipes. Thereflectors are electrically isolated from the pipe sections withinsulating bushes fitted to the end of the lugs in a conventionalmanner. The pipe section 930 has conventional end flanges 931 with holestherein allowing it to be bolted to another pipe section. The pipesection with the acoustic reflectors can be prefabricated on land andjoined by means of the bolt holes in the flanges 931 to another likefitted pipe. In this way, a pipe line fitted with acoustic reflectorscan be assembled as part of the normal process for laying an underwaterpipeline.

In operation the elongate acoustic reflectors of FIG. 9 work in exactlythe same way as the spherical reflectors shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Thisis shown in FIG. 10. Acoustic waves 940, transmitted from an acousticsource (not shown), are incident as shown on the aluminium tube 936forming the shell of rod 932. The tube 936 exhibits two regions disposedin the shell that act as transmission “windows”, i.e. such that theincident acoustic waves are in these regions efficiently transmittedthrough the tube 936 and into core 939 of the rod 932. One region 942will be at the centre of the in-coming beam, the other 944 will form anelliptical shape on the surface of the cylinder. The incident acousticwaves through window 942 follow one path 950 across the centre of thetube and other elliptically cross sectioned path 952 from the ellipticalentry window 944 as they travel across the core 938 and are refractedand focussed onto focus 954 of inside of the cylindrical shell 936opposite window 942. The waves on paths 950 and 952 are then reflectedback along their respective paths. Some of the incident waves are alsotransmitted around and within tube 936 as shown by the headed arrows intube 956 and these combine constructively at the focus 954 with the withwave on paths 950 and 852 to provide an enhanced reflected acousticsignal output 958 out of the reflector.

Although the elongate reflector in FIGS. 9 and 10 have been described inrelation to a pipe section, the reflectors can be applied to otherobjects, such as oil rig platforms, accommodation platforms for workersat sea, and other objects to be placed under water. The principles canalso be applied to land based objects such as gas pipeline as discussedbelow. The toroidal reflector 640 of FIGS. 11 and 12 can be constructedof glass reinforced polyphthalamide, aluminium or aluminium alloy forthe wall 644 and RTV 12 as the core.

Acoustic waves transmitted from an acoustic source are incident on theexternal surface 642 of the reflector 640. Propagation of acousticsignals across the core 646 and around the wall 644 and the constructiveinterference at a point opposite the area of incidence has beendescribed above. The materials are chosen such that the ratio of wavespeeds around the core 646 in wall 644 to that through the core 656 isaccordance with this invention.

Toroidal reflectors have the advantage for some purposes in thatstronger reflections can be obtained when interrogated from the side,compared with the top or bottom.

In FIG. 13 the lower portion 660 of stanchion such as a bridge pier isshown extending below surface of the sea bed 666. A series of acousticreflectors 661, 662, 663 and 664 as described with reference to FIGS. 5and 6 is mounted below on the lower portion 660 of the stanchion 660below the sea surface 665. The reflectors can be of any design accordingto the invention, spherical, elongate cylinders as described in FIGS. 9and 10, or toroidal as described in FIGS. 11 and 12. Toroidal reflectorsof the kind shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 are illustrated. Those reflectors661 and 662 permanently above the sea bed can be used to mark theunderwater pier 660. Currents will scour the sea bed preferentiallyaround the support item 660, eventually lowering the sea bed level to667 exposing the acoustic reflector 663 which was initially below thesea bed. Detection of this reflector 663 by interrogation by a sonarsignal will provide an early warning of scouring, and the need forpossibly attention.

As scouring continues and the sea bed drops further as indicated by line668, a second reflector is exposed, which may indicate that apotentially dangerous situation has developed and the underwatermounting of support item 660 may need urgent attention.

Although four acoustic reflectors have been illustrated, more or lessmay be used to suit the relevant design criteria.

A simple position indicating device is described in FIG. 14. Twoidentical acoustic reflectors 214 of the kind described herein aremounted underwater at the ends of a cross arm 213 of a trident-likemounting device 210 fixed to a sea-bed 212, say, between the legs of anoil rig platform (not shown). A further, larger, acoustic reflector ofthe same kind is mounted on an upstanding arm 217 of the trident 210mid-way between the two smaller acoustic reflectors 214. Each of thereflectors is spherical, the two smaller reflectors 214 having a smallerdiameter than the larger reflector 216.

A sonar array 202 attached to a submersible addresses the acousticreflector with a relatively wide band sonar transmission. Thistransmission will be reflected as described above. However, thefrequency make-up of the reflected signal varies according to thediameter of the reflectors, the smaller reflectors providing a reflectedacoustic wave 220 having generally higher frequencies than reflectedacoustic waves 222 from the larger reflector 216. These signals can beanalysed conventionally when received by the submersible, with thereflected acoustic waves' power and angles of incidence givinginformation concerning the distance of the reflectors 214 and 216 fromthe submersible. Knowledge of the dimensions of the trident 210, thelength of arm 213 and upstanding arm 217 can be used to compute, veryaccurately the position of the submersible with respect to trident 210.

This arrangement has one other interesting advantage. It is well knowthat short wavelength sonar signals attenuate much more rapidly thanlonger wavelength sonar signals. It is therefore clear that thereflected signal 222 from reflector 216 can be “heard” by thesubmersible at a much greater distance than the short wavelengthreflected signals 220 from reflectors 214. Thus initial guidance of asubmersible towards the target object marked by the trident 210 can beon the basis of the reflected acoustic signal 222 from reflector 216. Asthe submersible nears trident 210, reflections from the two smallerreflectors 214 will be obtained and final accurate steering of thesubmersible towards its objective achieved.

A more sophisticated position indication system employing the presentinvention is discussed with reference to FIGS. 15 to 18. In FIG. 9 a setof seven acoustic reflectors (001 . . . 007) as described above isarranged on the sea bed in a field 312 of interest. Each of thereflectors is designed to reflect incident acoustic radiation at one ormore peak frequencies 316, 318, 320 as in FIG. 16. By selecting fromthree specific frequencies to which each reflector will respond, it ispossible to code each reflector. Thus reflector 001 responds only atfrequency 320 and nominally has the binary number 001. Reflector 006responds at frequencies 316 and 318 and has the binary number 110 and soon for the other members of the set.

If now the field 312 is approached by a submersible 322 with sonar 324emitting a signal 314 in a wide band, each of the reflectors (001, 002,003 . . . 007) will respond with its corresponding binary number (001,010, 011 . . . 111), characterised by the responses at each of the threefrequencies.

Analysis of the returned signals will identify the position of thesubmersible 322 with respect to each of the acoustic reflectors 001 . .. 007.

It will be seen that transmission of a wide band signal in the way shownin FIG. 16 is wasteful as only a small proportion of the energy isreflected. In FIG. 17, the transmission signal 314 is now organised sothat it too is at the same frequencies 316′, 318′, 320′ as thosefrequencies 316, 318, 320, to which the set of reflectors is designed torespond. In this way much less power if required of the submersible.Alternatively if the same total power is transmitted as in the wide bandtransmission of FIG. 16, the signal will travel far further enabling thefield 312 to be “seen” from a greater distance.

Larger sets of acoustic reflectors to mark larger fields can built byusing four or more frequencies, up to fifteen using four frequencies,thirty-one using five and so on.

In the situation illustrated in FIG. 18 a set of acoustic reflectors islaid out on the sea bed as illustrated in FIG. 15. However, in this casethe acoustic reflectors are of different diameters, with say reflector001 being 15 cm in diameter, reflector 002 17.5 cm in diameter, with thediameters increasing in 2.5 cm steps to reflector 007. Apart from theirdiameters, the reflectors are identical. If now this set of reflectorsis interrogated with a wide band sound transmission of the kind shown as314 in FIG. 16, the response from reflector 001 will be as shown by thetop waveform in FIG. 18. The left hand reflection is a reflection fromthe surface of the reflector without the sonar wave being transmittedaround and though the reflector as described herein. The right handreflection wave, the bigger response, is the reflected sonar signal thathas been transmitted across and around the sonar reflector as describedabove.

Looking now at the second wave pattern, the patterns are identical savethat the time lapse to the larger second reflection is longer, as adirect consequence of reflector 002 having a larger diameter thanreflector 001. Looking at the third wave pattern the time separation ofthe two responses is even greater as a result of the greater diameter ofreflector 003. This time lapse between the first reflection and the mainreflection is characteristic, therefore, of each of the reflectors inthe set and enables each member of the set to be uniquely identified.This approach using reflectors of different diameters is likely to besimpler in practice to use than the approaches illustrated in FIGS. 16and 17, as noise arriving with the reflected signals may in some casesmake the narrow pulses of FIGS. 16 and 17 less easy to distinguish fromeach other, without further processing.

The applicants have found that use of acoustic reflectors of the kinddescribed herein can provide the acoustic underwater equivalent of airborne chaff which is widely used to divert or confuse heat seekingmissiles and the like which locate hot spots, such as engines onaircraft, by using infra-red guidance. Underwater the normal targetseeking mechanism for submersibles is sonar.

A system using the invention to disguise or protect a vessel in watercomprises a plurality of passive acoustic reflectors according to theinvention to be deployed into water around the vessel, wherein theacoustic reflectors are tuned to reflect sonar signals at specificacoustic frequencies perceived as a threat. The acoustic frequencies towhich the acoustic reflectors are tuned may be the frequencies used bysubmersibles seeking a target using sonar, or the frequency of soundwaves emitted by the vessel itself while travelling through water.

The designed frequency at which reflectors of the kind described hereinis a function of the diameter of the reflector and the thickness of theshell. Therefore, by designing these parameters, a system can bedesigned to deploy a large number of reflectors to reflect sonar signalsat a particular frequency of concern. A system covering a wide spectrumcan be designed by including reflectors operating at a number ofdifferent frequencies to counter a range of threats to a vessel.

Systems of this kind can be used for protecting vessels against threats,say from a target seeking torpedo, which identifies potential targets bysonar sounding, of for rendering the vessel invisible to the sonar ofsubmarines or ships or to so called “dunking sonar” systems. The systemcan also be used to mask the emitted acoustic signal of a vessel itselfby scattering the emitted sound and allowing a vessel to leave port, forexample, without being detected by acoustic listening devices.

Systems of this kind can be very simple. For a surface ship a number ofacoustic reflectors can be stored in a net and released when needed. Thedeployed reflectors can be linked together by cables or ropes or in netsas described above and recovered when the threat which led to deploymenthad been removed. In submarines the passive sonar reflectors accordingto this invention could be deployed through tubes.

In some situations buoyancy may be an issue, with the reflectors tendingto sink or rise to the surface of the water. If the reflector has a plugwith an eye as described buoyancy aids can be attached to the eye tohelp counteract any tendency of the reflector to sink, similarly weightscan be attached to counteract any tendency to rise to the surface,maintaining the reflector at the required level to disguise a vesselfrom unwelcome sonar detection.

It has also been found that such sonar reflectors according to theinvention can provide a simple method of measuring sonar operationalperformance on a ping by ping basis and to provide a realistic targetmimics for operator training and exercise. Such sonar reflectors can bemanufactured individually to have different responses, to providedifferent kinds of targets for training purposes.

Ideal water conditions allow for sonar detection of an object (whichcould be a swimmer of submersible, for example) out to ranges of 800 mto 1000 m. However changes of temperature, salinity and suspendedparticulates can affect the range dramatically and conditions can changesignificantly in a very short time.

Such sonar reflectors provide a consistent target strength which onlyvaries as water conditions changes and do not require a shore powersupply or batteries to operate making installation and maintenancesubstantially simpler. By deploying such a sonar reflector a suitablepoint at the desired range marker, for example, over the side of a smallvessel with a suitable weight and other fixings supplied, it is possibleto provide a training method for sonar detector operators. Alternativelyby laying a trail of such reflectors on the sea-bed at regular intervalsout to the maximum range of a deployed sonar, it is possible tocalibrate the actual range over which the sonar can actually detect anobject at that particular moment. The latter can be important in asecurity environment, where, say, the entrance to a harbour is beingmonitored, for is detection of an object is possible at the maximumrange of the sonar, a swimmer will take at least 25 minutes to reach theharbour, if the underwater detection range is reduced the swimmer willbe much closer, say 6 minutes away, before detection. This change indetection range makes all the difference between having a threatresponse team on the dockside or in the water.

A particularly useful application of reflectors of the kind described inthe invention is in the making of underground plastic or other non-metalpipes, particularly those used to carry gas for which currently there isno way of marking them, and which can only be found by trial and error.If when such a pipe is laid, or once laid is found, reflectors accordingto this invention can be buried close by the pipe. A low frequencyground penetrating acoustic wave will be reflected back from thereflectors and detected at the surface by an acoustic microphone, thusindicating the presence of the reflector and thus the pipe.

One interesting possibility is to note that the acoustic wave velocityin butyl rubber and silicon elastomers is more temperature dependentthan in less elastic materials, such as metals and ceramics. It ispossible therefore to tune a core made of one of these materialscarefully to the application in which it is to be used. A reflector tobe deployed in deep ocean, which is colder than water near the ocean'ssurface, may use a less dense elastomer than one to be used in shallowerwater. In all the examples using butyl or silicon based elastomers inthe core it is possible to increase the wave speeds in the elastomer byadding calcium carbonate to the elastomer before it cures. Thus, if inpractice, the specific elastomer can be optimised for use in the core byaltering the calcium carbonate content. The inventors have found thatthe practical maximum calcium carbonate in the elastomer is just over30% by volume; at higher volumes the calcium carbonate attenuates thesound wave and significantly degrades the output.

FIG. 19 illustrates the frequency response of a spherical acousticreflector 200 mm in diameter with an 8.8 mm thick shell. It will be seenthat the maximum response is at frequency of just over 120 KHz, butsignificant secondary responses occur at about 230, 385, 470, 520, 570and 625 KHz. This information can be used to finger print the reflectorin a system as described in the preceding paragraphs. By changing thewall thickness or the diameter an entirely different set of responseswill be obtained and that information can be used uniquely to identifythe reflector of interest.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An acoustic reflector comprising a shellsurrounding a core, said shell comprising one or a plurality of acousticwindows through which acoustic waves incident on the surface of theshell are transmitted into the core, and in which acoustic wavesentering the core are reflected from the shell opposite the window(s)back towards and through the window(s) and in which the core is a solidand in which the core is a solid join-free moulded butyl or siliconelastomer material and the shell comprises aluminum or an aluminum alloyand wherein the shell comprises two halves having rims around theiredges, the rim of each half comprising upstanding portions overlappingone another form a joint therebetween.
 2. An acoustic reflectoraccording to claim 1 in which the rim of each half comprises one or moreupstanding portions forming a tongue(s) and one or more groove(s) and inwhich the tongues of each half engage with the grooves of the otherhalf.
 3. An acoustic reflector according to claim 2 in which the shellcomprises two halves having a tongue and groove joint between thehalves, and wherein the halves are identical, with each half comprisingalternating grooves and tongues disposed in turn around the rim of theshell and each tongue is of equal length to a groove.
 4. An acousticreflector according to claim 1 in which the reflector is cylindrical andcomprises a central rod acting as the core surrounded by an elongatetubular shell.
 5. An acoustic reflector according to claim 4 attached toan underwater pipe section.
 6. An acoustic reflector according to claim1 which is toroidal.
 7. An acoustic reflector according to claim 1mounted on an underwater object as a scouring monitor.